Are You “Poison”?

“A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” – Luke 6:45

We have all watched in horror over the past many weeks as oil gushes from the broken well into the Gulf of Mexico. We are just now beginning to see the effects along the shores of the Gulf and we are told the oil, tar and other associated junk very well may be on our NC beaches soon.

And every minute more of the toxic stuff pours into the water.

As I pondered this, and the environmental tragedy it is, and will be for years to come, I thought about the verse above. There are many people who pour “toxic stuff – poison” from their mouths every day. And, as in the case of the oil on the water’s surface, the source of the “mess” is from a deeper source.

What is the “poison”? Of course, profanity quickly comes to mind yet that is only one part of it. Gossip, hateful words, cursing (as opposed to blessing), negativity in its various forms all add up to a “toxic” mess which not only fouls those immediately around us, but touches many others and in some cases the effects can (and will) be felt for years to come.

Proverbs 18:21 tells us death and life are in the power of the tongue. James 3:1-12 deals with the importance of the issue of controlling our tongue.

So, how do we fix it? Skimming the surface has little impact for really fixing the problem. We must go the source – the heart. A heart filled with things which are pure and Godly will bring forth things which have a positive impact on those around us. Spending time with God through prayer and reading His Word will fill our hearts with those things and leave little room for the poison.

Are there other forms of poison which come to mind? Are you a source of life in your school, workplace, circle of friends?